Arms Wasn’t Originally a Boxing Game, The Only Genre That Would Justify That Name

With the Switch launch upon us, more and more games are getting announced for the hybrid console and we’re getting extra information on already announced titles, like Arms. The producer of Arms, Kosuke Yabuki, did an interview with Famitsu, where he talked in-depth about his new boxing game.

The interview, translated by NintendoEverything, revealed the fact that Arms wasn’t even a boxing game to begin with, and there will be new characters and modes that we haven’t seen yet.

They looked at titles like Smash Bros. and Street Fighter and decided to make a game that wouldn’t be mainstream or lumped together with the 2D fighters.

“No, it was not originally a concept for a boxing game. There are many fighting games, like Street Fighter or Super Smash Bros., or even ‘3D fighters’ like Tekken, where the game is viewed side-on. Since the beginning of fighting games, the side view has been the mainstream, but I’ve always thought, why couldn’t we do it a little differently? However, it can be difficult to gauge depth in games where the camera is behind you. So I was absolutely convinced that it would not be suited for fighting games, which require precise distance control. But the fact that your arms extend, and that it takes a bit of time for them to impact, makes it quite likely your attacks will succeed. My idea was to have the game’s tactics revolve less around whether your attack would hit or not, and more around the timing and delay between your attacks connecting. So in pursuing a new kind of fighting game where the camera is behind you and your arms extend, Arms was born.”

With Arms being a brand new IP for the Switch, the producer hopes you’ll look forward to the title.

Arms is set for release in Spring of 2017. If you missed the original announcement trailer for the game, you can take a look at it here. Nintendo Switch launches on March 3.

What do you think of Arms? Is it a game that’s piqued your interest? Let us know down in the comments.